Miami Hurricanes: Angel Rodriguez Transfers From Kansas State

By John Engel

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Hurricaneshave quickly recovered after standout guard Shane Larkin declared for the 2013 NBA Draft. After touring the campus Wednesday, Angel Rodriguez signed with Miami as a transfer from Kansas State.

Rodriguez is returning home to Miami, where he went to high school. As a sophomore, Rodriguez averaged 11.4 points and 5.2 assists for Kansas State. He is attempting to receive a hardship waiver from the NCAA so he won’t be forced to sit out a full season. Rodriguez is making the move in order to be closer to his family, who live in Puerto Rico.

It’s obvious Rodriguez doesn’t even come close to a suitable solution to Larkin’s absense, but it’s certainly a start. Miami signed Belgium point guard Emmanuel LeComte last week and is making preparations to fill needs after winning the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season and tournament championships last season.

As a sophomore, Larkin averaged 14.5 points and 4.6 assists, and is entering the draft at the peak of his talents. Averaging 15 points per game in college isn’t going to translate into instant success for Larkin, and the guard could have benefited greatly from staying in school one to two more seasons.

Rodriguez will be an instant contributor for the Hurricanes, barring his appeal with the NCAA. He’s touted as being a strong ball-handler (Larkin was more of a score-first point guard) and reliable spot-up shooter.

In order to stay relevant in the ever-competitive ACC, Miami needed to take some gambles this offseason. However, signing Rodriguez may have been the easiest decision they’ll make this summer. He fell directly into the lap of Miami coach Jim Larranaga, making the recruiting process that much easier for the Hurricanes.

John Engel is a Pac-12 basketball writer for Rant Sports. Follow John on Twitter: @engelsportsguy.